Assembly roundup: June 2015

A round up of housing related questions answered by the Minister for Social Development during June 2015

Eligibility for the Affordable Warmth Scheme

To ask the Minister for Social Development whether he plans to revise the guidelines for eligibility to the Affordable Warmth Scheme to exclude Disability Living Allowance as part of the income threshold. Mrs Dolores Kelly (SDLP - Upper Bann) AQW 47005/11-15

The Affordable Warmth Scheme was piloted in 2012 and 2013 and evaluation of the pilots indicated that 67% of households surveyed had an income of less than £16,000 per year and 50% had an income less than £12,000 per year. My Department conducted a public consultation on proposals for the Affordable Warmth Scheme between 17 February and 9 May 2014 and proposed an income threshold of £16,000per year as a qualification criterion for the scheme.

Responses to the public consultation suggested that disability benefits like Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) should be excluded from the calculation of income. My Department then increased the income threshold to £20,000 per year to include all income including disability benefits.

The policy intention of the Affordable Warmth Scheme is to target low income households considered to be in severe/extreme fuel poverty. The expectation of setting the income threshold at £20,000 was that it would capture large numbers of low income households including those receiving DLA and AA.

Officials will monitor the volume of Affordable Warmth cases which are disallowed due to income during the first year of the scheme, particularly where they are in receipt of DLA or AA. My Department will review the Affordable Warmth Scheme after one year of operation.

To ask the Minister for Social Development for his assessment of whether the focus on targeting households will discourage self-referrals to the Affordable Warmth Scheme. Mr. Basil McCrea (NI21 - Lagan Valley) AQW 46017/11-15

The Affordable Warmth Scheme is primarily a targeted area based scheme which finds and assists households in extreme or severe fuel poverty. I expect that the vast majority of homes assisted will be in the targeted areas. Councils have the discretion to accept non targeted referrals from a range of sources including health professionals, social workers and Environmental Health Officers. Therefore, I do not believe that eligible householders will be discouraged from applying for the scheme.

Revising the definition of a House of Multiple Occupation

To ask the Minister for Social Development how widely or narrowly, will the term 'members of the same family' be used to describe tenants in the definition of Houses in Multiple Occupation, be interpreted. Mr Gregory Campbell (DUP - East Londonderry) AQW 45916/11-15

The review of the Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) regulation concluded that the definition was inadequate. The new HMO Bill specifies the meaning of “household” for the purposes of HMO licensing. The term household primarily includes members of the same “family”. The definition of family within the Bill includes married, unmarried and same-sex couples, step children and foster children, as well as blood relatives. The list of blood relatives includes parents, grandparents, children and step-children, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, nephews, nieces and cousins.

Additionally, a person who is a personal or domestic carer in a residential capacity is to be treated as a member of the household for the purposes of this Bill. 

Expected timeframe for introduction of the HMO Bill

To ask the Minister for Social Development to (i) provide a projected timeframe for when approval for the introduction of the HMO Bill will be granted by the Northern Ireland Executive; and (ii) to indicate when he anticipates the HMO Bill will be brought before the Northern Ireland Assembly. Mrs Judith Cochrane (APNI - East Belfast) AQW 46363/11-15

The Office of the Legislative Counsel has now drafted the Bill on the basis of the agreed policy. I will shortly be bringing forward a paper seeking Executive agreement to introduce the Houses in Multiple Occupation Bill in the Assembly. The Bill must pass final stage prior to the dissolution of the Assembly next year. Subject to Assembly process it is my aim to have the Bill completed in this mandate.

Better regulation of the Private Rented Sector

To ask the Minister for Social Development whether his Department has assessed the need for further statutory powers to provide for more effective regulation of the private rental sector. Mr Stewart Dickson (APNI - East Antrim) AQW 45814/11-15

My Department is currently undertaking a review of the role and regulation of the Private Rented Sector. Part of this review includes evaluating the effectiveness of existing regulation and considering regulatory practice in other jurisdictions. A discussion document will issue before Summer to garner views. A consultation paper, on proposals for change, will issue before the end of 2015. Any legislation that will need to be introduced will be taken forward during 2016/17. Regulation, in order to be fully effective, requires robust enforcement. Better regulation does not necessarily mean ‘more’ but can mean enhanced focus on enforcement of existing regulation. A key aim of the review will be to clarify the Department’s approach to regulation.

Consequences for non-compliance with the Tenancy Deposit Scheme

To ask the Minister for Social Development whether his Department monitors non-compliance with tenancy deposit scheme requirements; and if so, to detail the number of prosecutions or fines imposed since 2013. Mr Stewart Dickson (APNI - East Antrim) AQW 45815/11-15

The Tenancy Deposit Schemes Regulations (NI) 2012 came into effect on 1 April 2013. Council environmental health departments are responsible for enforcement action where a landlord / agent does not comply with the law. My Department monitors non compliance on a quarterly basis and is aware that standard council practice is to issue warning letters before issuing a fixed penalty. Since the introduction of the Tenancy Deposit Schemes in April 2013 there have been 4 fixed penalties, 2 of which resulted in court referrals.

Possibility of compulsory electrical safety checks in the Private Rented Sector

To ask the Minister for Social Development whether he has given any consideration to implementing electrical safety checks in the private rented sector every five years. Mr John Dallat (SDLP - East Londonderry) AQW 47438/11-15

My officials are currently preparing a discussion paper which will seek public feedback on the role and regulation of the private rented sector going forward.  Among the matters included within the paper is the possible introduction of electrical safety checks within the private rented sector.  Views received as part of this process will help inform future policy on this issue.

Health and Safety Assessments in Private Rented Accommodation

To ask the Minister for Social Development to outline any assessments his Department has conducted on homes in the private sector regarding (a) gas safety; (b) domestic electrical distribution safety; (c) provision of fire safety measures; and (d) provision of carbon monoxide safety measures. . Mr John Dallat (SDLP - East Londonderry) AQW 47435/11-15

My Department has responsibility for determining the statutory housing fitness standard which contains measures aimed at ensuring that dwellings are fit for human habitation. In practical terms Councils undertake inspections on dwellings to determine whether they meet this standard

While there are currently no explicit requirements in respect of the safety measures in question, fire, gas, electrical and carbon monoxide safety measures are implicit in many of the standard’s criteria. My officials are currently reviewing the standard and I hope to shortly publish a discussion document outlining options for change which include proposals on specific provision in relation to safety measures.

Measures to help home owners in negative equity

To ask the Minister for Social Development what action his Department is taking to help home owners in negative equity. Mr Chris Lyttle  (APNI - East Belfast) AQW 47198/11-15

Statistics on mortgage lending continue to show encouraging growth in the regional market, especially in relation to the number of people buying their first home; and for households that can afford their monthly repayments and do not need to move, negative equity will progressively become less of an issue. Despite this context many households continue to be affected by the rise and fall in house prices, particularly those where the home is no longer suitable for their purposes.

In the first instance, solutions to negative equity related problems can be secured through dialogue with the mortgage lender. Where mortgage arrangements are no longer suitable homeowners can take advantage of transitional arrangements which allow lenders to waive affordability tests for existing customers. For households where the loan is affordable yet the home is no longer suitable for their purposes, mortgage porting can allow homeowners to move their negative equity to a new property. In both cases I am working with the Council of Mortgage Lenders to improve the availability of these negative equity products.

Should homeowners encounter difficulties with the mortgage lender Housing Rights can offer bespoke advice and speak to a homeowner’s mortgage lender on their behalf. To enable Housing Rights’ mortgage debt advice service to better support affected households I have recently increased their funding by 50 per cent to £340,000. This free, independent and confidential service can be contacted on Tel: 0300 323 0310.

More information on the options available to households in negative equity can be viewed at the Money Advice Service website

Updates on the Housing (Amendment) Bill

To ask the Minister for Social Development for an update on the proposed Housing (Anti-Social Behaviour) Bill. Mr Paul Frew   (DUP - North Antrim) AQW 46911/11-15

The proposed Bill is now titled the Housing (Amendment) Bill. It will:

• require the Department of Finance and Personnel, the Department for Social Development and the Northern Ireland Housing Executive to exchange information about empty homes;
• enable organisations holding information about anti-social behaviour to share such information with social housing landlords by opening relevant data gateways under the Data Protection Act 1998; and
• enable the Housing Executive to register grants made by way of a loan as statutory charges.

All stages of the Bill will need to be completed by the end of the current Assembly’s mandate. Introducing the Bill before summer recess will maximise the chance of achieving this.

Number of warning letters a NIHE tenant should receive before eviction proceedings commence

To ask the Minister for Social Development how many warning letters relating to behaviour can a Housing Executive tenant receive before eviction proceedings are initiated. Mr Peter Weir  (DUP - North Down)  AQW 46387/11-15

The Housing Executive has advised that two warning letters, a first and then a final one, are issued to a tenant before eviction proceedings are initiated. This does not preclude issuing additional letters where necessary.

Transferring stock from NIHE to housing associations

To ask the Minister for Social Development how his Department ensures that no tenant is disadvantaged when transferring housing association. Ms Anna Lo MBE (APNI - South Belfast), AQO 8416/11-15

The views of tenants will be taken into account from the earliest stages of Small Scale Voluntary StockTransfer proposals. Initially tenants’ representatives will be involved in the process of selecting the preferredpartner housing association. Tenants will be fully and formally consulted on the transfer proposal. Finallyeach tenant will be invited to vote on the proposed transfer in a tenant ballot, the outcome of which will decide if the transfer goes ahead.

Empty homes

To ask the Minister for Social Development to detail how his Department is working with the Housing Executive on initiatives to bring empty homes back into use (i) across Northern Ireland; and (ii) in East Londonderry.  Ms Claire Sugden (IND - East Londonderry), AQW 47221/11-15